Paint roller

ABSTRACT

An improved paint roller comprising a tubular roll supported for rotation about a shaft which, in turn, is connected to a handle. The ends of the roll are sealed with plugs, one of which has an opening to permit the shaft to pass therethrough. Locking means secured to the handle engage one of the end plugs to prevent longitudinal shifting of the roll along the shaft without interfering with the rotation of the roll about the shaft.

United States Patent 1 Marino et al.

[ Sept. 23, 1975 l l PAINT ROLLER [76] Inventors: Frank Marine, 1593 Wales Ave., Baldwin, NY. 11510; Thomas D. Hadnagy, l7 Briar Ln., Roslyn Heights, NY. 11577 [22] Filed: Mar. 1, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 447,094

[52] U.S. C1 l5/230.1l; 242/683 [51] Int. Cl. BOSC 17/02 [58] Field of Search 15/27, 230.11, 248 A;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,563,049 8/1951 Liebelt et al 401/197 2382541 4/1959 Easley 15/23011 X FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1.335.837 7/1963 France 401/197 498,680 2/1951 Belgium l5/230.ll 270,891 2/1914 Germany 15/27 253.127 6/1960 Netherlands 401/197 Primary Examiner-Daniel Blum Attorney, Agent, or Firml(ane, Dalsimer, Kane, Sullivan and Kurucz [57] ABSTRACT An improved paint roller comprising a tubular roll supported for rotation about a shaft which, in turn, is connected to a handle. The ends of the roll are sealed with plugs, one of which has an opening to permit the shaft to pass therethrough. Locking means secured to the handle engage one of the end plugs to prevent longitudinal shifting of the roll along the shaft without interfering with the rotation of the roll about the shaft.

2 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures US Patent Sept. 23,1975

[IFIG.5

PAINT ROLLER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to paint rollers and in particular to a roller provided with means to prevent longitudinal shifting of the roll during use.

In recent years. paint rollers have become an increasingly popular alternative to the conventional paint brush for both professional painters and do-it-yourself home use. The conventional paint roller comprises a roll of napped material supported for rotation about a shaft to which a handle is connected. The roller is dipped into a tray to saturate the nappecl roll with paint and then the paint is rolled onto the surface to be painted.

Two related problems have been encountered with prior art rollers which causes them to sometimes drip or misapply paint. The first problem is that paint works its way between the roll sleeve and shaft thereafter causing binding of the roll or possibly dripping out at some inopportune time. The other problem is that the roller tends to longitudinally shift during use. This can result in the roller straying from its intended path with the result that paint is misapplied.

It is the principal object of the present invention to provide an improved paint roller which overcomes both of the above described disadvantages of the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The above and other beneficial objects and advantages are attained by providing an improved paint roller comprising a tubular roll supported for rotation about a shaft which. in turn. is connected to a handle. The ends of the roll are sealed with plugs, one of which has an opening to permit the shaft to pass therethrough.

Locking means secured to the handle engage one of the end plugs to prevent longitudinal shifting of the roll along the shaft without interfering with the rotation of the roll about the shaft.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the accompanying drawing:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational sectional view of a paint brush in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an end view of the plug at the free end of the roller;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational sectional view of the plug at the other end of the roller;

FIG. 4 is an end view of the plug of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the roller locking member;

FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of the locking member of FIG. 5; and.

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the locking member of FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Reference is now made to the associated drawing wherein the improved paint roller of the present invention is depicted. Referring to FIG. 1, the paint roller 10 is shown comprising a roll 12 supported for rotation about shaft 14. Roll 12 comprises an open ended. tubular member, the outer surface of which Hstmll e "m prises a napped fabric scur d to a rigid core 16. The nature of the fabric is determined by the t pe of paint to be applied and the surface to be coated in accordance with long established and well recognized principles.

A handle 17 extends from one end of shaft 14. The handle terminates in a handgrip 18, the free end of which is provided with a thread 20 to permit mounting of the roller to an extension rod.

A pair of end plugs 22 and 24 seal the ends of the rolls. To this end, plug 22 tightly fits within the end 26. The plug comprises a cylindrical member which fits within the open end of core 16 to securely engage the core. A recess 28 extends outwardly from the inner surface 30 of plug 22. The recess receives the free end 32 of shaft 14 and provides a guide for the shaft.

In a similar fashion. plug 24 tightly fits within the open end 34 of roll 12. As with plug 22, plug 24 tightly fits within core 16. A hole 36 extends through plug 24. As shown, shaft 14 extends through hole 36. The recess 28 and hole 36 provide journals to support the rotation of roll 12 about shaft 14. To this end. the dimensions of hole 36 and recess 28 are slightly larger than the diameter of shaft 14 to insure proper rotation of the roll about the shaft with a minimum of binding or wobble.

To prevent paint from entering the roll interior through opening 36, an O ring 38 is provided in a groove 40 in plug 24. The O ring insures a seal between the shaft and plug which prevents paint from entering the roll interior.

As shown in FIG. 1 a portion of plug 24 extends longitudinally beyond the end of the roll and groove 42 extending about the plug is cut in this portion of the plug. A locking member 44 in the form of a spring biased latch is mounted to handle 17. Locking member 44 includes a latch portion 46 adapted to be captured within the groove as shown in FIG. I. When the latch 46 is in this position. the roll is free to rotate about the shaft. However. longitudinal movement of the roll is prevented by the latch engaging the side of the groove. Lock member 44 includes a housing 48 from which the latch 46 extends. A hole 50 within the housing rides about the roller handle 17 captured between a pair of spaced retaining pins 52 and 54. The retaining pins are positioned to enable the member 44 to be shifted from a first position (shown in FIG. 1) wherein the latch 46 is engaged within groove 42 to a second position wherein the latch member 46 is free of the groove. A spring 56 rests on pin 54 and urges housing 48 toward its first position. The spring bias force may. however. be easily overcome by an opposing force to shift the housing to its second position so that the roller may be removed for cleaning or replacement. A finger grip 58 is provided on the housing to facilitate shifting of the housing.

Thus. during normal operation. the locking member 44 is urged to its first position and retained in this position under the action of spring 56. In this position, the roller is prevented from longitudinal movement by virtue oflatching member 46 being captured in groove 42. The rotation of the roller about shaft 14 is, however. not affected so that the roller may be used in the normal fashion. Thereafter. for purposes of removing the roller. the locking member is moved to its second position by asserting sufficient force via finger grip 58 to overcome spring 56. While the latching member disengages 46. the roller is freed from the shaft. This is especially useful in replacing a used roller since the dirt roller may he slid off the shaft withou requiring that the roller be touched and hence the users hands soiled To replace a roller on the shaft, the reverse procedure is followed.

Thus. in accordance with the above, the aforementioned objective is effectively attained.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed l. A paint roller, which comprises:

a tubular roll;

a shaft supporting said roll for rotation;

a first plug secured to and sealing one end of said roll and having interior surfaces defining a guide to receive a first end of said shaft;

21 second plug secured to and sealing the other end of said roll and having an opening extending therethrough which is coaxial with said roll;

said shaft passing through the opening of said second plug and into said roll so that said first end of said shaft seats in said guide and the second end of said shaft extends outwardly of said opening so that said second plug extends radially from said shaft;

said second plug having a circular groove track disposed on the outer periphery thereof;

a handle extending from said second end of said shaft;

a latching member movably mounted on said handle and shiftable radially of said roller between a first position wherein said member is captured in said groove track of said second plug member, whereby rotation of said roll is permitted about said shaft but longitudinal movement of said roll with respect to said shaft is restricted and a second position wherein said latching member is free of said groove track, whereby longitudinal movement of said roll with respect to said shaft is permitted; and

spring means mounted on said handle and engaging said latching member to yieldingly urge said member into frictional engagement with the surface of said second plug, within said groove track.

2. The paint roller of claim 1 wherein an O ring is mounted on said shaft to seal the opening in said second plug through which said shaft passes. 

1. A paint roller, which comprises: a tubular roll; a shaft supporting said roll for rotation; a first plug secured to and sealing one end of said roll and having interior surfaces defining a guide to receive a first end of said shaft; a second plug secured to and sealing the other end of said roll and having an opening extending therethrough which is coaxial with said roll; said shaft passing through the opening of said second plug and into said roll so that said first end of said shaft seats in said guide and the second end of said shaft extends outwardly of said opening so that said second plug extends radially from said shaft; said second plug having a circular groove track disposed on the outer periphery thereof; a handle extending from said second end of said shaft; a latching member movably mounted on said handle and shiftable radially of said roller between a first position wherein said member is captured in said groove track of said second plug member, whereby rotation of said roll is permitted about said shaft but longitudinal movement of said roll with respect to said shaft is restricted and a second position wherein said latching member is free of said groove track, whereby longitudinal movement of said roll with respect to said shaft is permitted; and spring means mounted on said handle and engaging said latching member to yieldingly urge said member into frictional engagement with the surface of said second plug, within said groove track.
 2. The paint roller of claim 1 wherein an O ring is mounted on said shaft to seal the opening in said second plug through which said shaft passes. 